UNITED STATES
Murder suspect extradited
A man accused of murdering a Border Patrol agent in a case linked to the government’s “Fast and Furious” gun-running sting on Tuesday was extradited from Mexico, the Department of Justice said in a statement. Heraclio Osorio-Arellanes, who is charged with the murder of Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry, was scheduled to appear yesterday in Arizona federal court, the department said. Prosecutors allege Osorio-Arellanes was part of a “rip crew” seeking to rob drug dealers along the border that confronted Terry and three other Border Patrol agents in a shootout north of Nogales, Arizona, in 2010.
UNITED STATES
Six indicted for conspiracy
Federal prosecutors say a Filipina and five of her family members have been indicted for conspiring to funnel about US$20 million in Philippine public funds obtained through an intricate bribery and fraud scheme into the country. The Department of Justice on Tuesday said that Janet Napoles and the others allegedly diverted Philippine government funds intended to benefit poor Filipinos and used the money to purchase assets, including property and luxury vehicles. Napoles and the others are charged with money laundering and conspiracy. Officials are working to have the defendants extradited from the Philippines.
JAPAN
Journalist seen on video
The government yesterday said it is doing its utmost for the rescue of a journalist believed to be held in Syria after a video of a man appearing to be him was posted on the Internet on Tuesday. Freelance journalist Jumpei Yasuda was last heard from in Syria in June 2015. Chief Cabinet Spokesman Yoshihide Suga told a regular news conference that he believed the man in the video was Yasuda. “We are pursuing our utmost effort [for his rescue] through various information networks,” he said. The man in the video said he was in harsh environment and needed an immediate rescue. He spoke in Japanese, but said he was a Korean named “Umaru.”
THAILAND
Mozambican man deported
A Mozambican fugitive wanted for a string of kidnaps for ransom and murders was repatriated at midnight on Tuesday amid a crackdown on foreign gangsters using the nation as a bolt-hole. Momade Assif Abdul Satar entered the kingdom three years ago shortly after being freed on parole from a jail for the 2000 gangland-style murder of an investigative journalist. Interpol issued a “red notice” after allegations Satar continued to run a ransom-kidnap business across Mozambique and South Africa from overseas that grabbed wealthy executives and charged up to US$3 million for their release. “He was extradited at midnight on a flight to Kenya,” for onward travel to Mozambique, Tourist Police Major-General Surachate Hakparn said. “We will not allow foreign criminals to use Thailand as base for their operations.”
UNITED STATES
Belgian tourist dies on hike
A Belgian tourist has died of apparent heat-related causes while hiking at a popular rock formation called “The Wave” near the Utah-Arizona border. Kane County sheriff’s Sergeant Alan Alldredge said 49-year-old Christophe Pochic was found dead on Monday night after his 16-year-old son called his mother at a hotel to tell her that his dad had become disoriented and needed help. It is the first death at The Wave in the Vermilion Cliffs National Monument since a trio of deaths in 2013, Alldredge said.
FRAUD ALLEGED: The leader of an opposition alliance made allegations of electoral irregularities and called for a protest in Tirana as European leaders are to meet Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama’s Socialist Party scored a large victory in parliamentary elections, securing him his fourth term, official results showed late on Tuesday. The Socialist Party won 52.1 percent of the vote on Sunday compared with 34.2 percent for an alliance of opposition parties led by his main rival Sali Berisha, according to results released by the Albanian Central Election Commission. Diaspora votes have yet to be counted, but according to initial results, Rama was also leading there. According to projections, the Socialist Party could have more lawmakers than in 2021 elections. At the time, it won 74 seats in the
A Croatian town has come up with a novel solution to solve the issue of working parents when there are no public childcare spaces available: pay grandparents to do it. Samobor, near the capital, Zagreb, has become the first in the country to run a “Grandmother-Grandfather Service,” which pays 360 euros (US$400) a month per child. The scheme allows grandparents to top up their pension, but the authorities also hope it will boost family ties and tackle social isolation as the population ages. “The benefits are multiple,” Samobor Mayor Petra Skrobot told reporters. “Pensions are rather low and for parents it is sometimes
CANCER: Jose Mujica earned the moniker ‘world’s poorest president’ for giving away much of his salary and living a simple life on his farm, with his wife and dog Tributes poured in on Tuesday from across Latin America following the death of former Uruguayan president Jose “Pepe” Mujica, an ex-guerrilla fighter revered by the left for his humility and progressive politics. He was 89. Mujica, who spent a dozen years behind bars for revolutionary activity, lost his battle against cancer after announcing in January that the disease had spread and he would stop treatment. “With deep sorrow, we announce the passing of our comrade Pepe Mujica. President, activist, guide and leader. We will miss you greatly, old friend,” Uruguayan President Yamandu Orsi wrote on X. “Pepe, eternal,” a cyclist shouted out minutes later,
MIGRATION: The Supreme Court justices said they were not deciding whether Trump could legally use the Alien Enemies Act to deport undocumented migrants US President Donald Trump on Friday lashed out at the US Supreme Court after it blocked his bid to resume deportations of alleged Venezuelan gang members, saying the justices are “not allowing me to do what I was elected to do.” Trump’s berating of the high court, in a post on Truth Social, came after it dealt another setback to his attempt to swiftly expel alleged Tren de Aragua (TdA) gang members using an obscure wartime law, the 1798 Alien Enemies Act (AEA). Trump has been at loggerheads with the judiciary ever since he returned to the White House, venting
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